avalanche
/ˈævəlɑːnʃ/
"avalanche" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“avalanche” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #15,339 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #15,339
- frequency rank, English
- 9
- letters
- 13
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A large mass or body of snow and ice sliding swiftly down a mountain side, or falling down a precipice.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | avalanche |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈævəlɑːnʃ/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #15,339 |
| Misspellings tracked | 13 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “avalanche” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for avalanche is 9 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈævəlɑːnʃ/. Corpus data places it at rank #15,339 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for avalanche, with forms such as "aavlanche", "avaalnche", and "avalacnhe". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From French avalanche, from Franco-Provençal (Savoy) avalançhe, blend of aval (“downhill”) and standard lavençhe, from Vulgar Latin *labanka (compare Occitan lavanca, Italian valanga), of uncertain origin, perhaps an alteration of Late Latin lābīna (“landsl… The correct English form is avalanche, spelled A-V-A-L-A-N-C-H-E.
Definition
- 1A large mass or body of snow and ice sliding swiftly down a mountain side, or falling down a precipice.
- 2A fall of earth, rocks, etc., similar to that of an avalanche of snow or ice.
- 3A sudden, great, or irresistible descent or influx; anything like an avalanche in suddenness and overwhelming quantity.
Etymology
From French avalanche, from Franco-Provençal (Savoy) avalançhe, blend of aval (“downhill”) and standard lavençhe, from Vulgar Latin *labanka (compare Occitan lavanca, Italian valanga), of uncertain origin, perhaps an alteration of Late Latin lābīna (“landslide”) (compare Franco-Provençal (Dauphiné) lavino, Romansh lavina), from Latin lābēs, from lābor (“to slip, slide”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: aavlanche,avaalnche,avalacnhe,avalancche,avalanceh,avalanchhe,avalanhce,avalannche,avallanche,avalnache,avlaanche,avvalanche,vaalanche
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of avalanche - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "avalanche"?
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Using “avalanche”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is A-V-A-L-A-N-C-H-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈævəlɑːnʃ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.